It was very sad recently watching the tragic aftermath of the violent earthquakes in Turkey and Syria. Through no fault of their own, aside from living in an earthquake zone, thousands of people lost their lives.

Mother Nature reminds us of who really is in charge. The Turks and Syrians have had political fights for centuries and a border separates them. Mother nature has no interest in such human borders. The tectonic plates and geologic fault lines that characterize that area do not defer to political boundaries. The earthquake crushed and killed thousands on both sides of the border.

Such events bring you back to the realization that we all are subject to the “whims” of mother nature. Just think of California–wildfires, floods, snow storms, along with shortages of water–and, Californians also live in an earthquake zone which could erupt at any time. Yet, people want to live there.

On another issue facing the West, there has been a fair amount of publicity recently about the dispute going on in the West over water rights and the Colorado River. With the exception of California, six states have agreed on a way to reduce water consumption from the river. However, California believes that it can better preserve its right to more of the water by going to court…so it looks like some federal court will decide who gets how much of the water that is still left in the Colorado River and its reservoirs.

Interestingly, in this whole water controversy in the West, not much is said about the role mother nature plays in the dispute. Much of the United States, west of the 100th meridian, has always been an “arid zone.” In other words, it has never had enough water. American Indian cliff-dwellers hundreds of years ago apparently had to leave their homes because they ran out of water. Not only was water scarce–in years of drought it could disappear. Human beings cannot live without water.

Today, the modern “cliff-dwellers” of the West live in fancy condos and homes in places like Arizona and Southern California–and they are caught up in the same problem–there is just not enough water. They have nearly sucked the Colorado River dry, and now are fighting over who will get the last drop of water that the river can supply.

And, guess what? Mother nature doesn’t care whether California, Arizona or any other state gets the water. The river runs through the Arid Zone and, at least for a while, there is going to be less water to dole out. The states, the courts, the federal government can do all of the “wheeling and dealing” they want to about water in the West–but mother nature will determine the outcome.

And, that brings me back to where I live. Mother nature has its impacts here as well. The summers are short, the winters are long. More snow falls along the Chautauqua Ridge than I would like. Once in a while we see a tornado or experience the left-overs from a hurricane…but we have plenty of water.

We have our own “whims” of nature, but compared to other places–we live in a pretty quiet and amenable place. When I look out at the rest of the world, I’m glad I live here.

Rolland Kidder is a Stow resident.